It’s been anything but an ordinary offseason for New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski. He refused to commit to playing in 2018 as he contemplated retirement. And even when he did give his commitment, he opted to follow Tom Brady’s lead and not to join the team’s voluntary offseason workouts.

But despite all of that drama, Gronk gave off a lot of positive vibes when asked by former Patriots linebacker Willie McGinest how he was feeling ahead of his ninth year in the league.

“I’m super excited about the upcoming season. It’s going to be fun,” Gronkowski said. “We’ve got another year, another training camp, it’s always a grind. You’ve gotta get yourself through that. And then just, excited for the season, man.

“You know how it goes. Another year down, you know what to expect now. Going into year nine, you know how to do it. So I kind of feel like that’s good to have in the back of your mind. You know what how it goes down, you know what to do, so super excited for this year.”

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Gronkowski also says his body feels “refreshed” and “ready” for another grueling football season.

“I am refreshed,” said Gronkowski. “You know after the seasons, the long seasons, how your body can feel and everything. So I just wanted to see where I was at, and see how I could get my body feeling, see if I could handle it, endure it again. And I feel like I’m super ready, man.”

It’s certainly promising for Patriots fans to hear such positive things from Gronk, especially given everything that’s happened this offseason. With regard to how well his body’s feeling, perhaps it was for the best that he took some time off during the voluntary portion of their offseason program. The work he’s doing with Tom Brady body guru Alex Guerrero might also be having its desired effects.

Gronkowski is coming off another stellar season last year as he put up 69 catches for 1,084 yards with eight touchdowns. The fact that his mind and body appear pretty sound heading into the season should bode well for his chances of coming up with yet another strong campaign.